Chelsea played their first match Premier League match in February yesterday. The Blues went away to Crystal Palace. Even as Ziyech stole the point for Chelsea late on, Romelu Lukaku had another miserable outing for Chelsea.
Romelu Lukaku made only two touches of the ball in the first half for Chelsea. Throughout the whole 90 minutes, the former Everton man could only touch the ball 7 times.
His 7 touches in 90 minutes is the least any striker has had since Opta started collecting data in 2003.
After a refreshing Club World Cup Tournament, the Belgian is back to struggling in the Premier League, so what exactly is going wrong and how can his situation improve?
Why Is Romelu Lukaku Struggling At Chelsea?
Last season, when Thomas Tuchel first took over, Chelsea operated with Kai Havertz as a false nine, and Werner out wide, Werner helped Chelsea’s attack by connecting with whoever was playing with.
The German didn’t score many goals last season, but he provided plenty of assists. So far this season, Romelu Lukaku has lacked a partner upfront.
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Lukaku plays as a target man for Chelsea and that is not necessarily his strength. Romelu Lukaku needs to be the focal point of the team`s attack. Yesterday against Crystal Palace, Kai Havertz was poor. The German could not connect with Romelu Lukaku and that did not help Chelsea.
Also, Chelsea play too many safe passes. Understandably, Thomas Tuchel does not want his high defensive line to get caught on the counter-attack too many times, but Chelsea have most of their possessions with their defenders and midfielders.
How To Get The Best Out Of Lukaku
Thomas Tuchel needs to find a way for Chelsea to take more risks upfront. Midfielders should look to connect directly with Romelu Lukaku and that will energize the Chelsea defense. Lukaku also needs to work on his agility and his movements, but the Belgian is mostly unstoppable when he is allowed to run at the defense.
The only time Romelu Lukaku took on a defender against Crystal Palace yesterday, led to a goal. Although the goal was ruled out for offside, it highlights the fact that Lukaku is a very dangerous attacker when he is facing the defenders not when he playing with his back to goal.
